Its back!
The Hyundai Atos proved to be a favourite among small car buyers. Hyundai South Africa sold over 45 thousand of these diminutive city cars between 2005 and 2013 and many of them are still plying SA roads. The Atos was replaced with the i10 which went on to its own successes but was also then discontinued a few years ago. Entry-level small car sales have been on the increase in the last year or so with the market dominated by the likes of Renault's Kwid and Datsun's Go but that market is in for a major shake up as Hyundai SA pulled the covers off of the all new Atos and we were there to catch all the action.
Related: Auto Trader reviews the Hyundai i10 1.1 Motion auto
Style
The DNA of the old Atos is still very much alive with the new version but there are some big changes on this small car. With a length of 3 610 mm the new Atos may not be the longest in this class but with a width of 1 645 mm it is the widest allowing for a maximum amount of shoulder room inside the car.
The Atos is also now available in a host of colours such as the Acid Yellow variant we piloted.The Atos now runs around on 14-inch wheels and has a ground clearance of 165 mm this makes getting in and out of the Atos a breeze. The interior of the Atos is also a very good place to spend some time with the seats being at almost the same height as the back of your knee as you sit down, this makes ingress and egress very easy and it feels very comfortable while driving to boot.
Interior
Although the new Atos is manufactured in India, the usual hallmarks of the country of manufacture are nowhere to be found. The Atos' interior is incredibly well put together and feels as though it comes from a European factory. Yes there are hard plastics on the doors and dash board, but they are well-made and lack the usual hastily built feel that comes in vehicles in this price bracket.
Standard fitment in the Atos is also of a very high caliber, you get ABS and dual airbags, electric windows, manual air-con and a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system that is fitted with Apple Car Play and Android Auto.
We really like the instrument cluster in the new Atos, it has a modern and stylistic feel and contains the 3-inch computer which details important info.
Engine
The new Atos is powered by a 1.1l, four cylinder, petrol engine that is mated to a five speed manual gearbox. This combo is useful for 50 kW and 99 Nm and a top speed of 150 km/h. Cruising comfortably at high way speeds and pottering around suburbia will return just 5l / 100 km of consumption and that's a winner in our books.
While driving our launch route we travelled the highways at speed and jostled with trucks coming in the opposite direction that would normally seriously upset the road manners of the competitors in this segment. The Atos however, remained surefooted and stable, even when buffeted by strong winds.
Price
Hyundai Atos 1.1 Motion MT - R 159 900
Sold with Hyundai's excellent 7 year / 200 000km warranty and 1 year / 15 000km service plan.
Verdict
We love the new Atos, it has just the right proportions of style, tech and pricing to seriously upset the entry level car market. It is poised to take the fight to its competitors and if the pre-orders from dealers are anything to go by, the new Atos is going to upset the applecart.
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